In one of the poorest neighborhoods in Amman, a 17-year-old Syrian refugee boy is living in a modest house with his mother and two siblings. Ali Al Khabbaz, the boy who cannot fathom the meaning of depression. Despite the challenging situations that Ali has been through, he keeps on smiling.
Ali left Syria in 2014 with the hope of finding a safe place in Jordan. His health conditions made his journey miserable. He remember his former home fondly:
“We had a nice home in the suburbs of Damascus with a garden. I enjoyed spending good times with my friends. Everything was beautiful in Syria. I used to play outside with my brothers. Also, I remember the hospital that I used to go for dialysis.”
Ali was born with hydronephrosis (swelling of a kidney due to a build-up of urine), one of his kidneys stopped working when he was eight months old and the other kidney stopped due to a medical error.
His mother spoke of the pain her son has been going through:
“My boy has been suffering a lot, words can’t describe the pain that Ali has since he was born. He underwent several surgeries; spleen removal, orthotopic bladder, and kidney implementation trials.”
Ali is one of many Syrian Refugees who are in need for urgent help for doing hemodialysis. His family can’t cover the high cost of the treatment after leaving everything behind in Syria as they fled.
Ali’s case is one of the most difficult cases that Islamic Relief Jordan (IRJ) has dealt with. He underwent five failure trials to have a fistula in different parts of his body till doctors succeeded to do it through his neck. Ali’s mother added:
“I have no money. I tried to find a job but Ali couldn’t move his head as it is getting bigger due to the fistula he has. If he needs water, he wouldn’t be able hold a glass of water by himself. He needs me every at every single moment. Therefore, I forced his brother to drop out the school and find a job to cover our basic needs and to pay for rent.”
Ali has been deprived of education due to his health condition. He went to school only for three years, but with his mother support he never stops reading the Holy Quran and other books as well. Also, he insists on learning English so he watches some English TV series.
“I love my family; my mother is a blessing from God. She is always here beside me. Every day we drink morning coffee together. She is my partner during my hospital follow up visits. My brothers mean joy. I’m waiting for them to get back home to play cards, and they always tell me jokes.”
IRJ continues to support Syrian refugees and vulnerable families through its innovative health project for the third consecutive year. The services provided include: a mobile clinic, primary and tertiary health care, and health awareness sessions. Hemodialysis sessions will be delivered to more than 31,000 beneficiaries all over Jordan.
Ali who is deprived of many things has the chance for better treatment. Generous funding from Islamic Relief USA helped Ali with his hemodialysis treatment three times per week in one of Islamic Relief’s contracted hospitals in Amman.
Ali’s mother added:
“He who does not thank people, does not thank Allah. May God give you more and more! Alhamdulillah, when Islamic Relief told me that it wanted to cover Ali’s treatment costs, it was the most beautiful moment in my life. Now Ali is doing hemodialysis on a weekly basis. His medications and injections are available, and when doctors ask for some tests we can have them done. You gave him a hope for a better life. Thank you so much for your help and I really appreciate it. Jazakallah khair”.